Pulmapäeva külastuspaigad Narvas: pulmasõidu kujunemise ajaloost

Abstract

The present article analyses a wedding walk as a constant element of the modern Russian wedding ritual in the post-Soviet cultural room. The article provides an insight into the history of the establishment of this ceremonial tradition, presents different research versions of the development of the Soviet tradition of newlyweds and guests’ visiting of the wedding sights on the day of the wedding. The objects of Narva wedding train route are in the focus of attention; the formation of this route dates back to the 1960s. During this period the direction of the route of the wedding walk was determined – from the city to the suburb (Narva-Jõesuu). The map of the wedding train route had three destinations: the monument to Lenin in Peter’s Square, the roundabout “Ring” in the city centre and Shishkin’s Pine in Narva-Jõesuu. The last two of the above-listed objects are still holding their positions on the map of the modern wedding train route as well. The ceremonial culture and the local mythology are developing around these wedding sights.

Keywords

• post-folklore
• russian wedding rituals
• narva wedding walk
• wedding sights